(Hempology.org note: some of the text on the copy used was
illegible. Underlined areas are used to designte this.)

HEMP SEED PROJECT FOR 4-H CLUBS

Uncle Sam has asked Kentucky to produce in 1943 the hemp seed
for the nation. Some of the seed will be used in 1944 to grow
another seed crop, but most of it will be used to grow hemp for
fiber. Growing hemp gives 4-H Club members a real opportunity
to serve their country in wartime. It requires a small amount
of fertile land and little or no special machinery; labor requirements
do not interfere with school work.

Grow at least half an acre of hemp; one to two acres would
be better. Land that will produce 40 or more bushels of corn per
acre will make 12 to 15 bushels of hemp seed per acre. Club members
know how to tackle a new task; try this one.

Select fertile soil. - Select an old feedlot, an old garden
spot, or any other fertile area. Better yields are obtained on
well-drained bottom soil, but good yields are obtained on productive
upland. Only land capable of growing good burley tobacco or 40
to 60 bushels of corn an acre should be selected. Good drainage
is essential.

Use plenty of fertilizer. - Use complete fertilizer on most
soils. Apply 200 to 400 pounds of 4-12-8, 1-10-6, or similar analysis,
at the hill. If applied broadcast, use 400 to 600 pounds an acre.
For soils outside the Bluegrass area, use in addition 200 to 300
pounds of 20-percent superphosphate broadcast. Stable manure is
an excellent fertilizer for hemp.

Prepare seedbed carefully. - Plow in later Winter or as early
as possible. Disk and drag at once. Pulverize all clods. Immediately
before planting, smooth the ground with a light drag ____ler,
or better still, with a cultipacker. A well prepared seedbed is
essential in getting a __________.

Plant your seed. - About 1 1/2 to 2 pounds of seed will plant
an acre. Purchase extra seed as it is often necessary to plant
the crop over.

Plant by hand. - Plant by hand in hills spaced 4 1/2 to 5 1/2
feet apart. Check for two-_ay cultivation. Use the wider spacing
for rich bottom land, the closer for upland. Mark off the field
with a light sled marker so that the furrows will be shallow.
Drop 12 to 15 seeds at each furrow crossing, spreading them out
slightly to make thinning the plants easier. Cover with the foot,
pressing the soil down firmly. Unless the soil is quite dry, cover
not more than 1 inch. Deep planted seeds may not germinate, especially
if a heavy rain occurs after planting. It is very important to
press the soil firmly over the seeds, for they sprout soon and
unless the soil over them is solid and compact it will dry out
very quickly and the sprouted seeds will die. Getting a stand
is one of the biggest problems in growing hemp, therefore plant
the seeds with the greatest care.

Thin and transplant, or plant over to get proper stand. - Most
of the hemp seed is produced on the branches of the plant. When
too many plants are in a hill, branches form only near the top
of the plant and produce a low yield of seed. With hills spaced
4 1/2 feet apart, there should be 2 to 3 plants per hill on very
productive bottom land; 3 to 4 plants on upland. If the spacing
is 5 to 5 1/2 feet, there should be 3 plants per hill on bottom
land; 3 to 4 on fertile upland. The more productive the soil,
the fewer the plants per hill.

If plenty of plants come up in at least three-fourths of the
hills, fill out the missing hills by transplanting from other
hills with too many plants in them. Follow the method used in
transplanting tobacco or tomatoes. Transplanting should be done
when the soil is moist, after a rain. If the stand is too poor
to be filled out in this way, rework the ground and plant a second
time.

As 12 to 15 seeds are planted to the hill it is always necessary
to thin out some of the hills. A good time to thin is after a
light rain when the plants are large enough to get hold of easily
with the fingers - about 8 to 10 inches tall. Roots of larger
plants become matted and it is difficult to pull out one of them
without injuring the others. As in thinning corn, thinning hemp
is best done when the ground is fairly moist. If the plants are
a foot or more high, either wait for a rain before thinning, or
cut out the plants instead of pulling them.

Cultivate same as corn. - Hemp requires about 2 to 4 inches
high, even if it is impractical to get close to the hills. Hemp
grows so fast that it usually chokes out the weeds in the hills.
Use a riding cultivator equipped with good fenders. Because the
rows are so far apart, run through the middles with a one-horse
cultivator. Discontinue row cultivation after the plants are about
2 1/2 feet high, but cultivate the middles somewhat longer in
order to keep down weeds.

Cut out the male plants. - Hemp produces both male and female
plants. Because flowers on the female plant produce no pollen
they must be fertilized by pollen from the male plants in order
to make seed. After the pollen is shed and the male plants begin
to die cut them out to give the female plants more room to develop.
Male plants interfere seriously with harvesting because the hard
strokes necessary to cut the male plants will shatter seed from
the seed plants.

Harvest after the seed begins to shatter. - Hemp plants do
not ripen uniformly. The date of maturity of plants in the same
field varies from 2 to 3 weeks. For this reason it is difficult
to determine when the crop should be cut. But these are the signs
that it is ready to cut; plants have dropped the large leaves;
branches have yellowed; red spots or streaks have appeared on
the bark; the clump of small leaves and shuck around the seed
have turned brown; and seed on the middle branches have begun
to shatter. Examine plants closely every few days after mid-September
to determine when to harvest.

In cutting, use a strong, heavy corn knife. Be sure the knife
is sharp enough to cut the plant with one stroke. Avoid jarring
the stalk as the seed of ripe hemp shatters easily. Cut the plant
a few inches below the lower branches.

Make strong shocks. - Select 3 or 4 strong plants, one from
each of 3 or 4 hills, to make a support for the shock, as in shocking
corn. Remove the branches from these plants. Bend them toward
each other and tie their tops together. Make a bundle of the branches
which have been cut off and place it on top of the support. Put
50 to 100 hills into each shock, depending upon the height and
size of the plants. Shocked seed hemp is easily blown down; therefore
great care should be taken in shocking. Spread out the base of
the shock, draw in tight near top and tie. Bind the shocks above
the center with two hemp stalks to prevent their blowing down.
Two or 3 days later re-tie the shock to strengthen it and also
to help it retain shattered seed. Place shocks about 24 feet from
each other.

Thresh as soon as dry. - Handle ripe hemp gently to avoid shattering
the seed. From 8 to 10 days after cutting or as soon as the seeds
are thoroughly dry, begin threshing and finish it as soon as possible.
Prompt threshing prevents heavy loss by shattering if the shocks
are blown over; it also prevent damaged seeds if the rainy season
sets in; and the heavy toll which birds sometimes take if the
shocks stand very long.

Do not attempt threshing when the hemp is damp, either from
rain or dew. hemp comes in ___ each night and in fair weather
dries out by noon. Therefore start threshing at noon and continue
into the afternoon as long as the hemp is dry.

Spread the threshing canvas (21" x 21") on the ground
between the shocks. Cut the stalks used to support the shock.
With a man on each side of the shock and one at the back, push
it down easily so that the shattered seed in the _______ shock
will fall on the canvas rather than on the ground. To thresh the
seed, beat the stalks with clubs about 1 1/2 to 2 inches in diameter
and 6 feet long. Turn the stalks frequently with the aid of the
clubs and beat until they are free of seed. Then remove the threshed
stalks from the canvas and repeat the process with the other shocks.

Clean Seed Before Marketing

Leaves, pieces of branches, dirt, and so on must be removed
from the seed before it is marketed. Two steps are necessary;
screening and fanning. You may screen and fan at one operation
by using a combine or thresher, but generally for small crops
you rub the seed through a "podder" or screen to remove
the coarse material. Separate the fine material from the seed
with a fanning mill. Directions for making a podder or cleaning
screen, and for using the fanning mill may be obtained from your
county agent or local dealer.

Market Seed as Soon as it is Cleaned

Deliver the seed to established receiving points as soon as
cleaned. The receiving points will be announced in the fall before
the seed is ready for delivery, by your county agent.

TIME SCHEDULE FOR HEMP SEED PROJECT

January - Select well-drained, fertile land for the crop.
February - Apply stable manure.
March - Work soil thoroughly. Apply phosphate broadcast and work
it into soil.
April - Get a permit for growing hemp. Get seed for planting.
May - Work soil again thoroughly. Plant seed. Replant missing
hills. Cultivate like corn.
June - Thin crop. Leave 3 plants to the hill. Continue cultivation.
July - Keep crop clean of weeds, especially morning-glories.
August - Remove male or blossom plants after pollen has dropped.
September - Cut and shock earl crop. Beat out seed after 8 to
10 days in shock.
October - Cut and shock late crops. Beat out seed after 8 to 10
days in shock. Clean seed.
November - Finish cleaning seed and deliver to designated receiving
station.

HEMP SEED RECORD

Date work done

Club member hours

Help hours

Horse, mule, or tractor hours

Breaking land

Disking and dragging

Applying fertilizer

Planting

Cultivation

Thinning

Removing male plants

Cutting & shocking

Beating out seed

Cleaning

Marketing

Yield (bushels)

______________

Value

$ ____________

Cooperative Extension Work in Agriculture and Home Economics:
College of Agriculture and Home Economics, University of Kentucky,
and the United States Department of Agriculture, cooperating.
Thomas P. Cooper, Director. Issue in furtherance of the Acts of
May 8 and June 30, 1914.